"Possessing opinions is like possessing fish, assuming one has a fish pond. One has to go fishing and needs some luck - then one has one's own fish, one's own opinions. I am speaking of live opinions, of live fish. Others are satisfied if they own a cabinet of fossils - and in their heads, "convictions".- Friedrich Nietzsche

Heralding the arrival of a new publication from The Weird House, the first edition of House Harris, a news publication that should provide a window into current affairs in Australia with articles from the Australian Associated Press who should be credited and duly paid their royalties.

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Feature Story
Economists divided on recession in Australia

MELBOURNE, March 8 AAP - Economists are divided over whether Australia can avoid a recession after December quarter data showed the first contraction in economic growth in eight years.

Last week's figures showed a 0.5 per cent drop in gross domestic product (GDP) in the December quarter, although the economy has so far avoided a "technical" recession after September quarter GDP rose by 0.1 per cent.More...

Feature Story
Metro Melbourne rocked by magnitude 4.6 tremor

MELBOURNE, March 6 AAP - The centre of Melbourne has been rocked by an earth tremor, with residents reporting buildings shaking across the metropolitan area.

Geoscience Australia, which monitors earthquake activity, said the tremor measured magnitude 4.6 on the Richter scale, with the epicentre at Korumburra, about 90km southeast of Melbourne.More...

The 54-year-old One Nation founder is contesting the Gold Coast hinterland seat of Beaudesert in the March 21 Queensland state election.More...

Feature Story
Teenagers charged after violent school rampage

SYDNEY, March 2 AAP - Four teenagers allegedly terrorised students and staff with a tomahawk and a machete during a glass-smashing rampage at a Sydney private school.

Trinity Catholic College in Auburn went into lockdown about 8.15am (AEDT) on Monday after the school canteen, a car and glass noticeboards were destroyed.More...

Feature Story
More job cuts as govt and opposition brawl over stimulus

CANBERRA, Feb 26 AAP - The federal government has been accused of creating panic after a senior minister said no one's job is safe.

There was more bad news on Thursday with commercial property manager Lend Lease announcing it would cut 340 jobs in Australia, a day after Pacific Brands said it would axe 1,850 positions.More...

Feature Story
Australia 'may escape' recession

SYDNEY, Feb 23 AAP - Australia may escape a recession in 2009, although analysts say a sluggish housing sector and possible downgrades to state government credit ratings could affect confidence in the economy.

The world's premier economies of the US, Japan and Germany are already in recession, along with at least 11 other industrialised countries.More...

Feature Story
Stimulus package projects to be fast tracked in NSW

SYDNEY, Feb 18 AAP - Infrastructure built in NSW from federal government's $42 billion stimulus package will bypass the usual planning and local government approval.

Instead, Premier Nathan Rees says the projects, including public housing and schools, will be approved by the newly appointed Infrastructure Coordinator General.More...

Feature Story
Stimulus package clears parliament - now for the hard part

CANBERRA, Feb 13 AAP - The Rudd government cleared a final hurdle to get its $42 billion economic injection through parliament but the International Monetary Fund says the key now is to implement its stimulus plan.

Following a fortnight of parliamentary wrangling, the government can now begin spending its $42 billion package of cash handouts and infrastructure investment after securing the passage of legislation through the Senate.More...

Feature Story
New stimulus package passes house, goes to senate

CANBERRA, Feb 12 AAP - The Rudd government will have a second crack at getting its $42 billion economic stimulus package through the Senate on Friday after a new version passed the lower house late on Thursday night.

The amended package, introduced by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, will see cash handouts to low and middle-income earners and single-income families cut by $50, a concession won by the Australian Greens.More...

Feature Story
Ninety-three dead as fires continue to rage across Victoria

MELBOURNE, Feb 9 AAP - Ninety-three people are confirmed dead in Australia's deadliest bushfires that have scorched Victoria, with fears the death toll may rise sharply.

There was little rest for many firefighters overnight, with 25 bushfires still raging out of control at 3.30am (AEDT) on Monday.More...

The government increased pressure on the coalition on Friday as it prepared to work out a deal with crossbench Senators to get the nation building and jobs plan through the Upper House next week.More...

Feature Story
Govt unveils $42 billion buffer against world recession

CANBERRA, Feb 3 AAP - The federal government has unveiled a massive $42 billion nation building and employment plan aimed at retaining 90,000 jobs over the next two years and insulating Australia against the worst of the global economic recession.

Billed as a "rapid response" to the deteriorating global economic conditions, the centrepiece of the 72-page plan is $28.8 billion of spending on schools, housing, energy efficiency in homes, community infrastructure and roads, and support to small business to be delivered mostly in 2009-10 and 2010-11.

All House Harris News Articles are individually selected by The Editor

Main Feature Story

Stimulus packages will help retailers tread water

By Colin Brinsden, Economics Correspondent
11 Mar 2009 12:01 AM

CANBERRA, March 11 AAP - The federal government's stimulus measures will enable retailers to tread water in what is an increasingly ugly economic backdrop, a leading independent forecaster says.

Centrelink will start doling out payments to families from Wednesday as part of the government's $42 billion nation-building package, while taxpayers earning less than $100,000 will start receiving their cash handouts next month.

Access Economics says the government's initial stimulus package, which gave out money to pensioners and low-income families just before Christmas, did help to lift retail spending in December, which was by far the largest month of growth in 2008.

"The economic backdrop continues to get uglier, so these measures are likely to only result in real (inflation-adjusted) retail spending treading water in the first half of 2009," Access director David Rumbens said.

"Indeed, Access Economics sees little growth in real retail spending being realised until the second half of 2010."

SYDNEY, March 12 AAP - Sydneysiders will on Friday be treated to the largest show of naval force since the Bicentenary celebrations, when 17 ships anchor east of the Opera House as part of a fleet review.More...

Fed: Bill reflects mandate to get rid of Work Choices: Gillard

CANBERRA, March 12 AAP - Workplace Relations Minister Julia Gillard has rejected claims by the opposition and some business groups that the government has exceeded its election policy in its Fair Work bill.More...

US: Alabama gunman kept 'gripe list,' survival gear

SAMSON, Alabama, March 11 AFP - The unemployed Alabama man who killed his mother and nine others on a vicious shooting rampage made a list of people who had done him wrong and stocked up on survivalist gear, officials said on Wednesday.More...

Fed: Bill reflects mandate to get rid of Work Choices: Gillard

CANBERRA, March 12 AAP - Workplace Relations Minister Julia Gillard has rejected claims by the opposition and some business groups that the government has exceeded its election policy in its Fair Work bill.More...

NT: Climate change to hit Kakadu and Top End tourism hard

DARWIN, March 12 AAP - Climate change will threaten Kakadu's key attractions with "devastating" implications for tourism in the world-heritage listed national park, new research warns.More...

Vic: Two left critical after five-vehicle crash

MELBOURNE, March 12 AAP - Four people have been injured, two critically, after a bus and four cars were involved in a crash at a Melbourne shopping centre.More...

ASIA: Better drugs encouraging AIDS complacency: Nobel doctor

NEW DELHI, March 12 AFP - People are forgetting to practise safe sex because they no longer fear dying from HIV/AIDS, says the doctor who won the Nobel prize for helping to discover the virus.More...

SCI: Battery breakthrough promises phone, car revolution

PARIS, March 11 AFP - Think of an electric car that can accelerate swiftly to cruising speed, laptop computers that can recharge in a couple of minutes rather than hours and a generation of super-miniature mobile phones.More...

CAN: Filmmaker plans to shoot with tiny camera in eye

BRUSSELS, March 11 AP - A one-eyed documentary filmmaker is preparing to work with a video camera concealed inside a prosthetic eye, hoping to secretly record people for a project commenting on the global spread of surveillance cameras.More...

US stocks extend gains after big rally

US stocks are marginally higher today after an explosive rally yesterday on expectations that the battered financial sector was beginning to show some signs of recovery.More...

SAMSON, Alabama, March 11 AFP - A US gunman mowed down at least 10 people, including his grandparents and other relatives, leaving a trail of bloodshed in southern Alabama before killing himself, officials say.More...

EUR: German school gunman shot dead by police: police sources

Police have say they've shot dead a teenage gunman who killed at least 11 people at a school in southern Germany.More...

Fed:Oppn to vote against "sneaky attack" on self-funded retirees

CANBERRA, March 11 AAP - The federal opposition will vote against a government bid to tighten the income test for the seniors health card, branding it a dishonest sneak attack on self-funded retirees.More...

Fed: No promises on extending home buyers grant: Tanner

CANBERRA, March 11 AAP - The federal government won't make a budget promise to extend the life of increases to first home owners' grants, even though there is evidence it has been a success.More...

Vic: Media shut out of bushfires hearings

The media will be shut out of preliminary community consultations into the bushfire disaster .. which are due to begin next week.More...

FED: Biden warns Australia is an al-Qaeda target

CANBERRA, March 11 AAP - US Vice-President Joe Biden has warned Australia is a target for al-Qaeda terrorists.More...

Australian stocks buoyed by Wall St, BHP and financials

SYDNEY, March 11 AAP - The Australian share market closed higher for a third consecutive day after gains from the mining and financial sectors, and follows a strong rally on Wall Street.More...

FED: HIV could adapt to be non-life threatening, scientist says

ADELAIDE, March 11 AAP - HIV could adapt so that it is no longer a life-threatening virus, a leading scientist says.More...

US stocks have leapt at the market open today after troubled banking giant Citigroup offered an upbeat profit outlook .. raising investor confidence.More...

Fed: Stimulus packages will help retailers tread water: Access

CANBERRA, March 11 AAP - The federal government's stimulus measures will enable retailers to tread water in what is an increasingly ugly economic backdrop, a leading independent forecaster says.More...

NSW: Teenager charged with lighting a bushfire on Central Coast

SYDNEY, March 10 AAP - A teenager has been charged with lighting a bushfire which threatened homes on the NSW Central Coast.More...

Obama to reverse Bush limits on stem cell research

US President BARACK OBAMA will wipe out another contentious aspect of his predecessor GEORGE W BUSH'S legacy .. by removing curbs on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.More...

EUR: Belligerent chimp proves animals make plans

STOCKHOLM, March 9 AP - A canny chimpanzee who calmly collected a stash of rocks and then hurled them at zoo visitors in fits of rage has confirmed that apes can plan ahead just like humans, a Swedish study says.More...

NSW: Bligh suffers swing, LNP have narrow lead, Newspoll

The latest Newspoll says Queensland Premier ANNA BLIGH has suffered a massive swing against her since calling the state election .. with the Liberal Nationals now narrowly in the lead.More...

FED: Men should also hear biological clock ticking

SYDNEY, March 10 AAP - The biological clock ticks just as loudly for Australian men, new research shows.More...

NSW: Rudd maintains lead, Costello now favoured over Turnbull

SYDNEY, March 10 AAP - The worsening Australian economy has failed to dent the Rudd Government's ascendancy over the Malcolm Turnbull-led Coalition, according to the latest Newspoll.More...

AFR: 11 dead as plane crashes into Lake Victoria

ENTEBBE, Uganda, March 9 AFP - A Soviet-era jet caught fire and crashed into Lake Victoria Monday after taking off from Uganda's main airport, killing 11 people, including three top Burundi army officers, officials said.More...

EUR: Global economy "approaching" pick-up: G10 central bankers

BASEL, Switzerland, March 9 AFP - The global economy is "approaching" a pick-up point as positive elements that could fuel growth have yet to be priced in, G10 central bankers say.More...

VIC: Man shot dead, one arrested, in Melbourne's north

MELBOURNE, March 9 AAP - A 41-year-old man has died after being shot in the stomach at a home in Melbourne's north.More...

Fed: Greens won't stand in way of Labor's IR laws

CANBERRA, March 9 AAP - The Australian Greens won't stand in the way of the Rudd government's proposed workplace laws as the clock ticks down on Labor's self-imposed deadline to get its legislation through the Senate.More...

WA: 10 charged with music festival drug offences despite amnesty

Ten people were charged with drug possession despite the use of drug disposal bins at a Perth music festival.More...

WA: Police fire shots at car after police car rammed

Police have fired shots during an incident in which a man .. wanted for a string of burglaries and a hit and run .. rammed a police car and injured an officer.More...

US: More Americans say they have no religion

NEW YORK, March 8 AP - A wide-ranging study on American religious life has found the percentage of Christians in the nation has declined and more people say they have no religion at all.More...

FED: Labor wants more poor students attending university by 2020

CANBERRA, March 9 AAP - The federal government has vowed to enrol an additional 55,000 students from disadvantaged backgrounds in Australian universities by 2020.More...

CANBERRA, March 9 AAP - Those who pay extra for green electricity will simply be making it cheaper for big polluters to meet emissions reduction targets under the government's climate change legislation, consumer group Choice says.More...

Qld: Dengue outbreak abating, say authorities

Queensland health authorities say they're winning battles against the state's worst-ever outbreak of dengue fever .. but the war isn't over yet.More...

ASIA: Dalai Lama says he's in top health but won't seek rebirth

TAIPEI, March 8 DPA - The Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in an interview with Taiwan television aired on Sunday, said he is in excellent health - but won't seek reincarnation.More...

MID: US to pull 12,000 troops out of Iraq by end of September

BAGHDAD, March 8 AFP - Iraq and the United States announced on Sunday that 12,000 more US troops will go home by the end of September in an acceleration of the US withdrawal, as a suicide bomber killed 28 people.More...